Rovaniemi’s international passengers have grown considerably; it has gained 3 more airlines

Rovaniemi is in northern Finland on the Arctic Circle. As it is best known for being the official home of Santa Claus, it is very much a winter place. It is also famed for many other winter activities, including husky and reindeer sledding, snowboarding and seeing the Northern Lights.

With 948,000 passengers in 2024, Rovaniemi is Finland’s second-busiest airport. Its traffic was by far the highest to date. It was 28% above its prior record and 43% more than before the pandemic in 2019.

The growth was entirely from the international market, which has expanded significantly. Some 420,000 international passengers were welcomed last year, significantly more than in previous years. However, the domestic market – comprising the capital route to Helsinki – was still below the prior high.

Gained 3 more airlines

According to Cirium schedule data, Rovaniemi has 338,000 one-way seats in Q1 2026 (January-March). That is by far the airport’s greatest offering in any quarter to date. Capacity has risen by 18% compared to the prior record, which was in Q1 2025.

The considerable growth is mainly due to incumbent airlines. However, compared to Q1 2025, three airlines have joined its portfolio. LOT Polish arrived from Warsaw WAW on 27 November 2025 (2-weekly), followed by Albastar from Milan MXP on 5 December (up to 3-weekly).

Israir will return to Rovaniemi on 4 February 2026, operating Tel Aviv (weekly to 2-weekly). Not surprisingly, the Finnish airport last had Tel Aviv flights in 2023, when Israir operated. Other airlines have served the market in the past.

Finnair is the largest operator

Rovaniemi will be served by more than 20 airlines in Q1. They include multiple network/FSCs, such as Air France, Austrian, Finnair, Iberia, KLM, LOT Polish, Lufthansa, Luxair, SAS and Turkish Airlines. Such carriers have 52% of the airport’s seats.

With 142,000 one-way seats, Finnair remains the leading operator. Its capacity has risen by a fifth year-over-year, with its two routes both up: Helsinki (+13%) and Tromsø (+184%).

ULCC Ryanair has served Rovaniemi since 2022. With 75,000 one-way seats, it is the airport’s second-largest user. It has 10 routes in Q1: Birmingham, Bristol, Brussels CRL, Dublin, Liverpool, London STN, Manchester, Milan BGY, Paris BVA and Shannon. Various markets are new: Birmingham and Shannon flights started on 27 October (both 2-weekly), followed by Bristol on 1 November (2).

Flights to 35+ airports in Q1

With 137,000 one-way seats, Helsinki is, of course, by far Rovaniemi’s leading market. As well as domestic P2P travellers, the capital market helps to provide European and global connectivity. In mid-January, 72-weekly one-way flights are available, provided by Finnair (67) and Norwegian (5).

Compared to the first quarter of 2025, Rovaniemi has gained various new dots on its map: London SEN (easyJet), Shannon (Ryanair), Tel Aviv (Israir) and Warsaw WAW (LOT Polish). However, neither Geneva nor Stuttgart is now served.